The Highlands resident recently competed at the Pan Pacific Championships in Melbourne, winning a gold medal in the male black belt division and bronze in the open weight division.

The tournament attracted close to 1000 competitors from across the world.

“I knew I was in with a chance,” Pycroft said.

“I definitely knew my opponents would be very strong and knew it would be an uphill battle.”

With a range of different styles on show, Pycroft said he continued to focus on his own game plan and what he could control.

“There are different styles [but] I didn’t have to adapt too much because I wasn’t really concerned about what they were going to do,” he said.

“I was just worried about my own game. The focus for me was to get to my position first. My game plan was just to be first in everything, [for example if it was] initiating a takedown. I always wanted to be a step ahead.”

In the lead up to the Pan Pacific Championships, Pycroft travelled to Sydney three times a week to train at Perosh Mixed Martial Arts with former UFC Light Heavy Weight Anthony Perosh.

He also competed at the  Machado National Championships where he won two gold medals.

Pycroft is currently ranked in the top 10 Black Belts in Australia by The Australian Federation Of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

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Now eyeing off two gold medals at next year’s World Championships, he will relax his training schedule before ramping it up again at the beginning of next year.

But before the World Championships, Pycroft will compete in January 2019 for a chance to represent Australia and his Bowral club  Pure Jiu Jitsu Southern Highlands at an international competition in Abu Dhabi.

He attended this competition last year but was injured in the first round.

Then in August 2019 he will compete in Master 2 Black Belt Super Heavy and Open Weight divisions of the World Championships in Los Angeles.

Pycroft said tournaments such as the Pan Pacific Championships were important preparation in order for athletes to challenge themselves against the best in Australia and the world.

He has previously competed in three World Championships, winning a bronze in one and a silver in the most recent one, four years ago. 

Visit www.purebjj.com.au for more on Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in the Highlands.

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